Richard Havard Boileau, 70, of Hilton Head Island, SC, passed away on August 15, 2023, in Charleston, SC, after a courageous battle with MDS cancer.

A celebration of life will be planned for the future.

Richard was born in Bryn Mawr, PA, on August 25, 1952, son of Richard Ridgway Boileau and Sara Elizabeth Frorer.

Richard is survived by his wife, Debra Murlene Boileau, of Hilton Head Island, SC, his uncle Peter Rogers Frorer, and his nephew Bradley Ridgway Boileau.

Richard is preceded in death by his father, Richard Ridgway Boileau, his mother Sara Elizabeth Frorer, and his brother, Ridgway Frorer Boileau.

Always a hard worker, Richard had many jobs before, during and after college – gas station attendant, stadium cleaner, grave digger, seller of redwood burl tabletops, ski lift operator, core driller, bar tender, bouncer, shipyard worker, yacht rigger and delivery skipper, among others.

In 1974 Richard graduated from the University of Tampa during an economic downturn. He eventually put his business degree to work in 1981 at All Metals Service & Warehousing in Florida, California and New Orleans, LA, learning to handle large industrial equipment. His foray into selling aircraft parts began at Jetstream Aviation in Ft. Lauderdale, FL, in 1985. When he left Jetstream, he happened upon a small inventory and started selling aircraft parts from the trunk of his black BMW. As sales expanded, Strider Aviation, Inc., was formed in 1988, and he took on partners from England and Luxembourg with an associate from Iceland. The company sold and warehoused used commercial jet aircraft parts and was named after one of Richard's sailboats, "Strider."

Richard was a lifelong sailor and adventurer, learning to sail from his father in the Chesapeake Bay. He met Debra in the fall of 1978 at Clearwater Yacht Club preceding the 2nd annual Kahlua Cup Regatta. He taught her how to sail in Tampa Bay out of the Davis Island Yacht Club on board their first sailboat, 22-foot "Steppin' Stone." Their second yacht, 30-foot "Glass Slipper" carried them from New Orleans into the Caribbean Sea.

Richard's dream was to circumnavigate the globe, so in 1991 he retired early from Strider Aviation, but remained a director, and climbed aboard "Strider," a 46-foot Dufour ketch, with first mate Debra. They began sailing and never looked back. From 1991 to 1998, this adventure covered 6 of the 7 world continents, the Panama and Suez Canals, and countries in the Caribbean Sea; Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans; and the Mediterranean.

Returning to the USA didn't end Richard's adventures. He settled in the Florida Keys, where he owned 2 catamarans, 34-foot "Skate" and 42-foot "Tango" (it takes two).

In 2005 "Tango" left the dock, sailed the Caribbean and ended up in Costa Rica from 2008 to 2017. During his 9 years of living in and exploring Costa Rica, Richard drove his 20' Mercedes Sprinter van named "Go" from Florida up the USA east coast into Nova Scotia and Newfoundland in 2016. A second camping trip crossed the USA to the west coast and northward to Alaska in 2018.

Richard and Debra enjoyed living in Homosassa, FL, from 2017 to 2022, exploring the river, fishing, kayaking and swimming with manatees. In July 2022 they made their move to Hilton Head Island, SC, to begin a new adventure.

Richard was fearless. He loved motorcycles, bungy jumping, scuba diving, chute flying and volcano viewing. He was compassionate, kind, creative, spirited and had a joy of living. Always smiling, he made friends wherever he went. He treasured music from the '70s and '80s, especially Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young – "best music of our generation", he'd say.

Richard was a mentor to many through his quiet demeanor, humbleness, and refusal to take no for an answer. He always took responsibility for his own life and lived it to the fullest with no regrets.

His passing is more than just a life gone too soon. It is the end of a true love story and the loss of a deep soul who touched so many. "Sail on, sail on sailor."

In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to the Marine Conservation Institute, Seattle, Washington.